Nexus
by surban75
Summary: What if Hojo had a third test subject? How will their crossed paths affect one another? Will their friendship stand up to Hojo and his creations? AU a little OOC. Rated for violence, language, assault, sex, and death. Not yaoi. Suspense/Drama/Adventure etc. Previously titled "Unbreakable Bonds" More warnings inside as needed, various pairings. *Work In Progress*
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not now or before and most likely not in the future, own Final Fantasy, Square Enix or any of the characters.

This story is inspired by the fan fiction "Reduced to Specimens" by Jaydee Grey. With permission, I have taken some elements from her story and inserted them into mine to build upon. Certain portions of this story are presented as re-writes of parts of "Reduced to Specimens."

A/N: This is the first fan fiction that I ever wrote and after it was taken down by choice, I considered not putting it back up. In fact, I told someone at one time, that I was never going to put this back up, but with much encouragement from friends and family, I have decided to post it again. This was not an easy decision as there was a lot of feelings surrounding this story. However, this story meant a lot to me and helped me get through a difficult time in my life. I read a lot of fan fiction and when I read "Reduced to Specimens" it inspired me to want to write my own fan fiction story. I want to thoroughly thank Jaydee Grey for her understanding, grace under pressure and endless generosity.

I changed the name from "Unbreakable Bonds" to "Nexus" because I got to the point that the name just got on my nerves. I have also shortened the chapters from 12 to 18 pages, cut down to 4-8 pages. This: oxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox signifies a scene break. For some reason the scene break lines don't work in some places. Italics are dreams, thoughts or flashbacks. Story contains pseudo-science.

I had this crazy idea for this story and wanted to get it out. As with any emotion that you find yourself stuck in, I needed to purge it and starting up a story was my outlet.

Great big hugs and thanks to my fantastic beta **SubZeroChimera**!

* * *

"In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life: it goes on." -Robert Frost

Chapter 1

Feeling the first parts of confusion of first waking up, Zack thought, _'What is that?_' Something was digging into his ribs.

Trying to move, a shot of pain went through his body and he stopped immediately. Slowly opening his eyes, the low lighting in the dim room was thankfully easy on his growing headache.

_'Where am I?_'

All of a sudden the realization hit him right where it hurt. The stairs beneath him was what was putting painful and odd pressure on his body. Looking over to his right, he saw Cloud lying in an awkward position upside down on the stairs. Blood, and a lot of it, drawn by gravity up Cloud's neck, across his face and through his hair where it dripped to the stairs.

Reaching out, he tried to shake him, check on his friend, he just couldn't lose anyone else. Panic set up residence in his gut as he realized that he could almost reach him. Darkness seeped in and took hold of him and he found he was fighting a losing battle, he just couldn't stay conscious.

A shrill voice ricocheted around the enclosed area, "Excellent!"

Opening his eyes just enough to see a little light, he recognized Cloud on a stretcher across from him. A man who resembled that vile and creepy Professor Hojo looked him over, "This is excellent! He will make a fine test subject."

Hojo, cackled in that obscene laugh that was oh so annoying to anyone who was within ear shot. Trying to look over the edge of the stretcher so he could see Cloud, a thought interrupted the desire to see his friend, _'Wait… What? Did he say test subject?_' He wrote it off, thinking that he just misheard him; after all, he was surely in shock from blood loss.

The undersides of his eyelids were a comforting feeling until he felt hands touching him. The pain from his wounds that he sustained from the fight with Sephiroth stung from the rush of cool air when they turned him over. The pain got him thinking again and he was sorry of that fact, _'Sephiroth! Cloud killed him… Sephiroth killed everyone.'_

Unable to really speak, his inner monologue was becoming quite consoling. When the hands that didn't feel very gentle, laid him out, his wounds yet again let him know he was still alive. When the tightly drawn canvas material met his back, he grimaced and screamed with his inner voice, 'Ouch! You stupid bastards, that hurts.'

Next thing he knew, the rhythm of the sway back and forth while he was carried to the medical transport lulled him.

When the rhythm stopped with a jerk and then nothing, he slowly opened his eyes. Taking a slow pained glance around, he could see Cloud lying on his back on another stretcher right next to him. The slow steady rise and retreat of his chest in sync with his breaths, made Zack sigh in relief. Again, he tried to reach for him, but his weakened arm got intercepted by a medic, "Just keep your hands right here," Then his hand got placed back by his side.

Closing his eyes again, his thoughts drifted slowly like a piece of paper in a breeze, a paper airplane given life by the wind, _'Alright then, I will talk to him once we reach the hospital and they fix us up. Just hang in there Cloud, we'll make it, I promise.'_ Already forgetting what he had heard from Hojo, he let out a small quiet sigh as he let himself fall back into unconsciousness.

* * *

A loud screechy voice was heard from farther inside the reactor, "Sir…Doctor Hojo…Sir, Professor," The owner of the voice, an infantry soldier, appeared in the doorway.

Highly annoyed, Hojo raised his head from the paper work he was signing to berate the infantryman, "Do you not realize that I am busy? Why are you yelling, I am NOT on the other side of town… Now, what do you want?!"

The soldier looked down at his feet and already regretted yelling so emphatically. In a normal inside voice the soldier informed the visibly irate man, "Sir, we found something in here that you may want to see."

Hojo's ominous gaze changed to straight anger, "What! Why are you just now telling me this! Get out of my way, insect," Bounding up the stairs, he went faster than anyone had ever seen the man move before.

As he entered the room where Jenova was kept, his gaze fell several feet down from the walkway. Right next to the wall on the far side, a large crystal seemed like it was hovering just above the raw mako. The shiny part was equal to the dull green color of mako, and although it was cloudy and difficult to see, there was definitely something in it.

The smooth surface on the top of the very large crystal had a fluid-like appearance and resembled a beautiful bright olive colored river rock. Adding small swirls of different shades of green, it could easily be called exquisite. But Hojo wasn't looking at the beauty, he was looking at what it held beneath the surface. It was large enough to hold a full-grown man, "Well what are you waiting for? Get something to get it up here!" Under his breath he said, "Sephiroth, my boy."

The soldiers immediately got to work bringing the crystal up on the walkway. Stroking the lightly glowing crystal, Hojo knelt and smiled a gleeful and uncharacteristic smile. The infantryman who discovered the crystal was beyond creeped out by what Hojo considered a _smile_, "Load the crystal and its contents _carefully _into the second truck." The soldiers immediately complied, fearful of what Hojo could do or them becoming another 'lost' soldier.

Loading the man-sized crystal proved somewhat of a challenge as the soldiers quickly found out. Although the top was smooth, the bottom of it was nothing but large jagged edges that were sharp and jutted out with dangerous intentions. Placing it on a large industrial type metal stretcher was hard enough so they were forced to place it on its side. Out the door and down several stairs, the path to the transport seemed never-ending. Grunting and sweating the entire way, one of the soldiers, Private Barber, lost his grip and caught it just as Hojo rounded the corner. A glance at the soldiers across from him, the other guys sighed with relief that Hojo hadn't seen the slip. They eventually got it into the back of the truck and closed the doors. The strange Professor was fast approaching them with a clipboard in his hand, "Take the crystal to the mansion along with the other cargo, and _do not_ break anything!"

* * *

Zack could feel hands on him, cold hands that matched the frigid metal table he was on. Hearing chatter, he was only able to pick up a word here and there. 'Table… IV… clothes… tank… Soldier First Class… sword wound… blond…'

Opening his eyes slowly, an extremely bright light shone in his face. As his eyes gradually adjusted to the light, he looked around, nothing seemed familiar to him. A lightening bolt of pain shocked him, he squeezed his eyes shut for a moment. Upon opening his eyes again, a woman wearing a white lab coat approached him. Thinking that it was rude not to smile at her, his drug induced joy, he watched as she emptied the contents of a syringe into his IV. Just as he started to doze off, he asked where Cloud was. The lab tech said nothing so he drifted into darkness again with his thoughts of Aerith...

_Zack's refusal to fight Angeal cost him a long trip down under the plate without the advantage of using stairs or taking the train. Taking a quick assessment of his body, everything felt fine and in good working condition so far. Hearing a soft voice, he immediately thought that maybe he wasn't alright. _

_"Heelllooo"_

_Cracking his eyes open a little, there was a figure standing over him, a beautiful woman with bright warming light surrounding her. It was only natural that he asked the first thing that got from his brain to his mouth, "Heaven?"_

_Long hair, light brown in a braid fell over her shoulder, "No, sector 5 slums."_

_The bright light resembled wings as the divine light enveloped her now, "Angel?"_

_A soft innocent giggle and a radiant smile made her that much more beautiful, "No, I'm Aerith"_

_'I sure do miss her….'_

_oxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox_

* * *

Brady Chase was new to the lab run by Hojo. To say that he was nervous was a bit of an understatement. When he got the call yesterday to come to Nibelheim with the rest of Hojo's lab crew he was so happy that all his hard work was finally recognized, and by none other than Hojo himself. He had heard stories of how he was creepy and strange but he was just another rung on that ladder to the top to him. Chase was as power-hungry as any other person in the Shinra Corporation.

Hard work and recognition was the key that got him where he was. Now that he was in a good position, advancement was only given to those who showed promise. Of course a little underhanded deal here and there didn't hurt either, he knew how to play the corporate game and he played it well. Hojo was his ticket to success.

When the soldiers brought in his patients, one was a Soldier First Class and the other an infantry soldier. The analytical medical side went into straight into work mode.

The first patient was a fairly large male, approximately 18 to 20 years old and well-muscled. The second patient was smaller framed and damn near a child and couldn't have been more than 14 to 15 years old.

Quickly looking over their injuries, he let out a long sigh, at the prospect of performing surgery until late into the night. Adjusting his white lab coat, he looked down at the notes that were scribbled on the pages from the medics that recovered them from the reactor.

A lab tech handed him some official looking files, "Hmm, Soldier First Class Zack Fair and Private Cloud Strife, infantryman." Glancing over to Zack, he was awake and trying to look around. They still needed surgery for their injuries, so he ordered one of the lab technicians to give him a sedative.

Getting the sedative ready, he smiled at her and it was surprising that he really was a beautiful man with a smile that would light up a room, "Hey pretty la...lady, h…how is Clo…ud?" She said nothing, just a simple smile, and injected the medication directly into the port of his IV and watched as he drifted off. Those particular drugs didn't work well on Soldiers because of their enhanced metabolism so he had her double the dose.

Another lab technician, Burton Hill, was such a weasel of a man. The odd little man reminded him of Hojo, only younger. Looking over the tanks, he wanted to make sure the water was the right temperature for them after their surgery. Hojo came in about that time and started barking out orders. Two more lab techs came in right after him and the lab was then a flurry of activity.

Chase and two of the male guards cut away Zack's shirt to show his extensive wounds. Two very deep sword wounds that went across most of his chest and abdomen required surgery to repair the massive damage to skin, bone, muscle tissue and organs. The cause of his low blood pressure was the blood loss, Chase wondered how he was even still alive.

Going to the younger patient, the boy's clothes were already discarded to prepare him for emergency surgery. A long slash along his abdomen was as deep and bad as the first patient. The wound that was more concerning was a stab wound that went through his chest just below his heart and exiting his back, very close to his spine. Also having massive blood loss, they both needed surgery immediately. Talking to the only female lab tech, Chase ordered, "Go ahead and get their pre-op vitals."

Busy with his notes, Chase also uselessly directed some other soldiers to move a huge crystal into one of the other labs. When his other technician joined Doctor Chase next to the blond patient, the large metal swinging doors closed, blocking his view of Hojo. He didn't care about a crystal anyway, that was not in his job description; his job was a medical Doctor.

Hojo soon entered and he informed him of the condition of the Professor's newest toys, "Both patients need surgery immediately, before they lose any more blood."

Without turning his head from his present distraction Hojo ordered, "Well, then do what you're being paid so well to do then." When Hojo turned, he studied him, looking for any deceptions with his beady black eyes and said coldly with a greedy smile, "Do not let either of my specimens die. From now on, let's call them specimen C and specimen Z."

"Yes sir," Brady answered blandly, not knowing or caring one way or the other, Hojo's reasons.

* * *

_'It is so warm and I feel weightless'_

Zack opened his eyes and could see just blurs, goo, a gummy feeling substance covered his eyes, like Vaseline. Trying to rub his eyes, his arms were blocked from moving. Then there was something being held in his mouth, and it was choking him. Not being able to see much, he still tried to look around, trying to see where he was. Pulling with his arms again, they still didn't move from his sides. Looking down, he could see straps tying his hands at his sides and down toward his feet. Being in warm water, he floated upright in a large round tank of some sort. With his ankles also tied to the bottom of the tank, the straps on his extremities kept him from floating to the top. Air hoses and IV tubes hung from the tank's top.

About the time that panic started to set in he could see a man, no, two men standing in front of him. They were talking until one of the men stepped over to a panel in front of the tank and pushed a few buttons as the other one seemed to be writing down something on a clipboard.

When the water level started to go down, so did he. Feeling weakened, he wasn't used to that feeling and it scared him. As he slumped to the bottom of the tank he flailed against his bindings and ventilation tube, wanting desperately to gasp for air on his own. The white coat clad man who let the water out opened the tank and with help from another man, they flipped him over to his back and pulled the tube out of his throat, "I'm Doctor Chase, just relax."

The sound of the metal doors swinging open was followed by the bark of Hojo entering the room, "Oh, specimen Z is awake I see."

Coughing and trying to take in deep breaths, fear crept into his gut at the sound of the voice. Trying to push himself up to a sitting position, he noticed his nakedness but his larger alarm was that his wounds were completely healed. Starting to shiver, he finally was able to find his fractured voice through a raw throat, "Hojo? What is going on? Where are we?"

"There will plenty of time to talk later specimen Z. We will begin as soon as you and your friend feel up to it," Hojo smirk didn't make him feel any better about the situation.

"My friend?" Zack looked around and just to his left was another tank just like the one he was in. Seeing Cloud floating in water and unconscious with his wrists and ankles tied to the bottom of his tank just like his. Little white discs with wires were stuck to him, a ventilation tube was inserted into his mouth and he had an IV. One of the IV tubes had the eerie green glow of mako, "Why are you calling me specimen Z? You know what my name is you creepy bastard."

Zack's confusion seemed to not be getting any clearer. In fact, he was more confused now than he was before. The doctor who let the water out came back and inserted a needle into his shoulder, untied his wrists and ankles, took out his IV and disconnected all the leads that attached to his temples, chest, neck and abdomen. Wanting to get away from the stranger, he just couldn't seem to get his body to cooperate with him and that just added to his current stress level.

Looking over at Cloud, his head jerked a little to the side, then Hojo spoke again, "Well, it looks like specimen C will be waking up soon as well. Excellent!" Hojo quietly cackled to himself as he covered his mouth with the back of his hand. It was a common thing that he always did and made him look even more like the evil scientist.

Feverishly, he tried to remember what happened that got him in to this. First they went on the mission to Nibelheim. Then he was at the reactor and fighting Sephiroth, his thoughts rambled_, 'Now I remember, Sephiroth's last attack almost killed me and Cloud came in and went after him. Later, he came out of the door, stumbling, holding his chest... Cloud killed Sephiroth! Then he collapsed on the stairs right next me. Hojo showed up and then I woke up here. This is seriously messed up. Alright, Zack get a hold of yourself.'_

Two men who weren't any bigger than Zack came and picked him up and carried him over to a gurney, laying him on his side. Covering him with a thin sheet, they left the dank and depressing lab and went down a hallway that seemed just like it was out of the horror movie that he and Aerith watched a week before he left. She hadn't wanted to watch it, but he promised her a foot massage.

They came to what looked like a prison cell in a loony bin, "Anyone wanna tell me what's going on?" Zack asked nervously, "What are your names?" They said nothing while they picked him up and tossed him on a bed and took the sheet with them, "Ouch!"

Sitting up slowly, fighting off dizziness, he looked around at his new surroundings. From his bed he noticed that it felt like a hospital room but with a much less comfortable bed. The bed was a little wider than a single, but the mattress was only about 2 inches thick. There was another bed that was the mirror image across from his. Cold white tiles covered the floor and walls in the fairly large room, it looked to him that it was about the size of his bedroom in his apartment back at Shinra. A small bathroom doorway on the back wall and all he could see from where he sat, was a sink in a small counter. The real bonus was the small round mirror set into the wall above the sink.

Cold, naked with the added water droplets that hadn't yet dried on his skin didn't alleviate any fears of his. Blowing into his hands, he rubbed them together to help fight the cold. There was no sheet on the mattress, no blanket and no pillow. He laid his head back down and looked at the ceiling, there was a large fluorescent light to high for him to reach. One of the two long light tubes was burning out and it flashed and twitched on and off. He kind of laughed a little. Why he thought it was funny, he had no idea. Stress and fear played a major role in being hysterical he learned from some of his classes while in SOLDIER.

Before he could get too far into his analysis of his own psyche, the shot they gave him was pulling him into a dream…

"_Scary movies scare me Zack."_

"_That is what they're supposed to do silly."_

"_Yeah but…"_

"_I'm here and I will never let anything happen to you. There is not a monster alive that will get near you." _

"_You're so cute when you say things like that."_

"_I bet I'll be even cuter when that monster is chasing you!"_

"_Oh you!" Aerith slapped at his arm in that playful way that he liked._

"_Okay, how about I will… massage your feet."_

"_Really?" _

"_Unless they stink and then no deal!" Zack smiled._

"_You're terrible!" Aerith giggled._

_Tilting his head a little, he did his best puppy dog face. Very few people could resist that face and he knew it. _

"_Alright, scary movie it is, but it better be a really good massage."_

"_I will have you know that I give the best foot massages, even Sephiroth thinks so."_

"_Oh you are so bad!"_

_After laughing and getting slapped again, he reached up, he marveled at how dainty she was, as his hands covered each side of her head. Pulling her closer, his lips touched hers so softly as she leaned into him. The kiss turned to a more passionate one as his hand glided down to her shoulder, embracing her with deeper meaning. _

_Feeling her hands going around his waist, and up his back was almost to much as it sent warmth throughout his body. With slow deliberate movements, she guided her hands up under his shirt and pulled it from him effortlessly. With tiny kisses and small bites leaving soft red marks, they trailed down her neck to her collar bone. Slipping his fingers under the straps of her dress they fell down the soft curve of her shoulders. _

_When making eye contact with her, he could feel the love flowing through his veins. Smiling to each other, he leaned into another kiss when her eyes lit up like a fireworks display. He was at her mercy and always was. _

_Laying her down slowly in the flowers, he kissed down her chest between her breasts and down to her soft porcelain stomach. When he looked up at her, he came back to her parted lips. Looking into her beautiful green eyes, he waited for her to let him know it was okay to go further. Getting her answer to his unasked question, her hands found their way to his waist band, as he was finding his way around her bra. _

_Soon he was lying right next to her propped up on his elbow, kissing her neck and ear. A calloused and rough feeling hand softly rounded her waist as he pulled her closer to him. When a small moan of arousal parted her lips, she looked up and smiled that fabulous smile and it was directed to him and only him. Love, he knew that he was in love with her and wanted her forever, in fact he could see himself married to her one day. Never had he felt this way about anyone. It was not their first time with each other, but it always felt like the first time. _

* * *

A/N: Thanks to all of you who favorite, subscribed and/or reviewed, I appreciate your time. To quote another author, "Getting reviews makes me feel all warm and squishy."

Please send me your reviews. It is really easy. Just click your arrow in the little box, write what you thought or felt about the chapter and then click right down there, just below the box. A little lower… a little to the right… yeah, right there! Click it! *grinning*


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not now or before and most likely not in the future, own Final Fantasy, Square Enix or any of the characters.

A/N: I am going to try to get these chapters out as evenly spaced as possible, schedule permitting. If I'm late or miss a day or two, sorry about that. Both me and my beta are in school and as a woman with children, I insist that school comes first. Although I have shortened the chapters, that doesn't mean I took anything out. I simply took each chapter and cut it into two chapters.

Also, instead of writing the word out like SOLDIER, I have opted to just capitalize the first letter. (Regular infantry soldiers will not have a capital so that will distinguish the difference.) To me, sometimes I just find it distracting if I see the word a few lines down and my eyes are drawn down to it instead of the line I'm on.

There is a poker game in the flashback and I'm not real sure on how to play. I think I got it right, if not, sorry, just pretend.

I want to thank my fantastic beta **SubZeroChimera**!

* * *

"He who devotes sixteen hours a day to hard study may become at sixty as wise as he thought himself at twenty." –Mary Wilson Little

Chapter 2

Waking to the sound of a door opening, he looked to see that it was a slightly shorter man than him, well-muscled with dirty blond hair. Weirdly enough, he was walking backward and carrying someone's pale legs. Another man who was slightly taller than the silent blond and muscled, but with a little pudgy stomach, followed behind with pale shoulders. The man's dark brown hair parted down the middle showed the beginnings of a bald spot on the top of his head.

Sitting up and looking over at them, the naked man covered himself and watched them curiously, then he recognized that they were the same ones that brought him from the lab to the cell. The man who was carrying the legs looked around a little nervously but the second guy said with quiet confidence, "We're not supposed to talk to ya'll but... my name is Davis."

Zack's nervousness made his voice slightly quiver, "Please tell me what's going on." Looking over to the other bed, they put Cloud on it as _gently_ as they had him. Davis and the silent guy turned and left without another word. The silent one took the sheet that covered Cloud with him as they left.

Calling his name, he ran on tip toes across the arctic cold tiles over to see Cloud, still groggy and his eyes were rolling around aimlessly. With a sigh, he relaxed at the thought of him at least still being alive.

Having a little more strength back, he decided to explore his new 'home away from home'. That thought made him let out a nervous little scoff. The entrance to the bathroom sat situated in the corner of the back wall. Stepping into the room, he passed the sink, then the toilet to the shower stall at the other end. No towels or anything at all to put on. Damn he was cold and it felt like he was getting colder. With his feet cold enough that he couldn't really feel them anymore he explored the heavy metal door that served as the entrance to the cell. A little window about the size of his face was at eye level. '_Very welcoming_' he thought to himself sarcastically. He couldn't see through it, so he guessed that their captors would be able to see in. Heading back over to his bed, he lay back down and curled up and waited for Cloud to wake up.

Not having to wait too much longer, Cloud sat up slowly and looked around at his new surroundings. Noticing Zack across the room, he blushed when he noticed his friend across from him, and naked.

"Geez, Zack, put something on would ya?" Cloud said as he rubbed his forehead and eyes.

Zack sat up at the movement and sentence from his friend, "I could say the same thing about you, buddy," The former Soldier said with some amusement in his tone.

Cloud looked down and blushed even more and tried to cover himself. After swallowing down some of his embarrassment, the blond asked, "Where are we?"

Zack started speaking to Cloud, but then ended by addressing their captors, if they were listening, "Don't know, but it sure is cold and we sure could use some clothes and blankets in here!"

Trying to stay calm, the infantry soldier searched his memory for what might be going on, "I remember some tanks and water. You?" Cloud was visibly shaking from the cold and maybe a little anxiety to top it off.

"Yeah, I woke up while you were still in that tank. No one told me anything except our new names," Zack rubbed his arms with his hands trying to warm up.

"What new names?" Cloud asked puzzled.

"Yeah, I'm specimen Z, your specimen C. Real original, I know," Zack immediately regretted saying that when Cloud just looked at him with puzzled eyes. He realized that he was going to have to remember that Cloud was just a kid and scared. Hell, he was scared too, but he had to be strong for his friend. Cloud was looking to Zack to fix it and he was going to fix it, even if it killed him. Trying to back pedal his statement, he added, "Not that it means anything. We won't be here for very long, I'm sure of it."

* * *

The four soldiers that carried the crystal into the lab were standing around the crystal studying it. The more curious, but clumsy, Private Barber sat down on the floor next to it to re-tie his boot that had come untied when he stepped on the lace.

"Damn Barber," said Specialist Abbot, "Born a klutz, die a klutz!"

Barber just chuckled in a mocking tone while the other soldiers laughed, leaving a smirk on his young face.

"Hell, you almost dropped that crystal and got us all in trouble," Private Stringer added to the insults.

Barber stood up and faced the others, "Yeah? Well I didn't drop it now did I?" Knowing his argument was useless, he still felt the need to defend himself against his friends and peers.

Laughing loudly, Private Lawrence said, "Yeah, thanks to us!" Finishing up with a jovial slap to Abbot's shoulder.

Barber just stood there and shook his head in defeat.

When Hojo came in the room, he was a man on a serious mission and made a B-line toward the laughing soldiers. Glaring at them until they backed away, Hojo turned his attention to the crystal, checking it over for damage.

Barber and the others scattered in two different directions. Unfortunately the lack of grace that Barber was born with, tripped him up on a hose that went across the floor. It went to a tank that looked like the other ones in lab 2 only this tank was on its side. It resembled a big clear coffin. Of course, the other three soldiers started a whole new set of laughter as Barber tried to right himself before he broke something. Catching himself next to a large vat of what looked like mako in it, sure it stopped his fall, but the vat cracked down the side, 'Oh Shit' was the less than helpful thought in Barber's mind.

Snapping over to Barber quicker than he ever moved before, Hojo got up close to his face and said in a threatening tone, "Get out of here, _if_ you can leave without breaking something else. If you do break anything else, I will have your job and maybe even your head!" As the last part came out of Hojo's mouth he could swear that he saw an evil flicker behind those eyes. Stringer, Abbot and Lawrence came around to Barber, being chastised, and grabbed his arm to pull him along with them. As they left out the door, Hojo cackled to himself and repeated, "And your head!"

Standing out in the hallway, waiting for further instructions they all just stared at Barber until Stringer said jokingly, "This is becoming a habit. You know, rescuing you from certain doom!" Muffled laughter erupted from the other two.

Barber wasn't amused and downright alarmed, "He seemed _so_ serious. Didn't you see and hear it too?" Asked the soldier that was the center of amusement.

"No. I was too busy watching to see if you were going to fall into the tub of raw mako," responded Lawrence trying not to laugh.

Under his breath, Barber reaffirmed, "Well I think I'm gonna steer clear of him."

"Probably a good idea," Abbot continued, "We don't know how long we're going to be stationed here and getting on his bad side from the start is definitely not in your best interests."

After a long pause, "I wonder if those other guys that we picked up survived?" asked Stringer.

"Don't know, but I think I know the dark-haired one though," Abbot continued, "If he is who I think he is, we were on a mission and I was with the squad that was his back-up. He's a Soldier first class. Awesome in battle… Zack Fair. He always seemed like such a nice guy, but when battle started, he was all business."

"Do you know the other one?" Stringer asked.

"I do," Piped up Lawrence, "We were in basic training together. Private Strife. We didn't get along very well."

"Hey, you guys, you two go guard the front door to the mansion and you two guard the entrance to the lab sectors," Ordered the Sergeant in charge.

Quickly Stringer and Abbot headed for the front door and Barber and Lawrence went to the entrance to the labs.

* * *

As two of his techs entered the room their eyes locked on Hojo. Caressing the crystal as if trying to comfort it, he talked quietly to it, but they couldn't tell what he was saying. Looking at each other, they shrugged their shoulders and went to their workstations.

Wolfe was an excellent lab assistant. Excellent in the way that he did whatever he was asked and never questioned. The man was a superior's wet dream all wrapped up in a package that strongly resembled Burton. Not really knowing a lot of what they would be doing there at the labs, he was willing to please his superiors in any way they wanted or needed. Of course that creeped Harding out to no end.

Harding on the other hand, knew that no good could come from Hojo. He was well aware of what kind of man Hojo was. Originally joining the resistance in hopes of helping the planet, he had no idea how deep he could get until the phone call that brought him here to the Nibelheim mansion. Being the only Physician's Assistant, he was so far being underutilized. Sooner or later, he would be in possession of something that could be useful.

So far since he got there, all he saw was a Soldier and an infantryman. Harding considered both his enemy, but he needed to separate himself from his emotions so he was able to get the information necessary for the resistance's mission. In doing that, it would need him doing things to these men that Hojo saw as an everyday and perfectly sane thing to do. After all, the way Hojo's thinking went, he didn't know how no one had their own laboratory/torture chamber in every basement though out the suburbs.

Now he was in front of this crystal, he couldn't tell who or what was in it, but Hojo seemed to know and he was almost over the top excited.

"Alright, you two come over here; you need to put this crystal into the tank in a mako bath," Hojo ordered.

Pointing to his own chest, raising his eyebrows, Harding's anger at the implication of manual labor was at the forefront. A short glaring contest ensued between Harding and the Professor until Hojo's glare became something less than human.

Finally complying, the crystal was very heavy and still on the heavy-duty metal stretcher the soldiers brought it in on. Slinging the straps attached to the crane that lowered from the heavy-duty framework on the ceiling, under the crystal and securing them in place went smoothly. The soldiers that brought it in, however, had it perfectly balanced in a precarious and dangerous position on the carrier and it was just waiting for an opportunity to fall. When it slid off to one side, it trapped Harding between one of the larger jagged edges and the floor. The naturally sharp edge sliced into his calf muscle and hot liquid pain followed.

Aggravated, Hojo phoned Dr. Chase to come to Lab 1 immediately. Sighing in annoyance, he waited until Chase entered and began to assess Harding's injuries. Looking over to two of the three guards that came with him, the Doctor ordered, "Davis, Drake, come move this crystal."

Watching the Professor closely, the painstakingly way he displayed his impatience, did nothing for Harding's own desire to not be there right then. If Hojo had tasked him to do something within his job description, he would be relatively pain-free and for sure not pinned to the floor. His blood wouldn't be leaking slowly out instead of staying inside his body, the way Gaia intended.

"Carefully!" Hojo added.

Operating the crane Davis slowly lifted the crystal a few inches at a time and once Harding's leg was pulled from under the crystal, Wolfe took over at the controls. Davis and Drake, the muscle who guarded the prisoners, picked Harding up and moved him to the infirmary while Dr. Chase quickly followed.

The third guard, Charles, stayed behind to help with Harding's duties. Moving the crystal into the tank that laid on its side went without another incident. Wolfe emptied the contents of the vat that Banner had cracked into the tank with the crystal.

When Hojo went to the control panel for the tank, he raised it upright, "You there. Wheel this vat out of here and dispose of it." Hojo ordered Charles indicating the cracked vat. Thankfully the vat cracked but did not leak. As Charles left, Hojo eyed the tank, "Yes, very good." Leaning in closer to the tank that had the eerie green glow of mako he whispered, "We will make everything right again."

* * *

Zack and Cloud were sitting in their cell for what seemed like days but it was really only hours. Trying to get some sleep was out of the question, their shivering from the cold kept them from getting any real sleep. Lying on his side, Cloud's shivering had turned into shaking uncontrollably. Facing Zack, the blond kept his eyes closed, trying harder to fall asleep.

When Zack looked at him, he saw just how young he really was. 'Damn it!' Zack cursed himself, he felt like he is the one who got them into this mess. Cloud didn't have to be involved at all. He could have run and gotten away, gotten help somewhere. However, knowing Cloud, he would never have left. Sephiroth had taken everything from him, his mother, his home and his girl. Zack really couldn't blame Cloud for wanting justice, but was it really worth the price they were paying now?

Zack got up and walked over to Cloud and nudged the pale shoulder with the back of his hand, "Hey Buddy, sit up."

Opening his deep blue eyes, it sank Zack's gut at the panicked look behind those eyes. When Cloud sat up, Zack sat down next to him and started to put his arms around him. Alarmed, Cloud jerked back quickly and tried to push the larger man away, "What are you doing?!"

Zack smirked, "Easy there Spike, don't flatter yourself."

Cloud raised a questioning eyebrow, "You don't think it's a little weird?"

"You're not exactly who I want to be naked with," Zack sighed patiently, "Listen... your cold, I'm cold… just shut up and cuddle with me already," Zack's added half-smile almost made him chuckle at the confounded look that crossed the blonde's young features.

Slowly, Cloud leaned his side closer to Zack and let him finish wrapping his arms around him. Cloud kept his arms across his own chest, but lowered his head slightly to fit better against the larger chest. After a few minutes, sure enough, he was starting to warm up a little. Trying to relax, Zack leaned his back to the wall, put his chin on top of Cloud's head and closed his eyes.

"Z…Zack?"

"Hmm?"

"What do they want with us?"

"...Don't know…"

"You think we will get out of here?"

"Oh definitely. I always have a plan," Zack said with a small grin.

"Humph...Yeah…I know how your plans work," Cloud said between his diminishing shivers.

"I have no idea what you're talking about..." Zack grinned bigger knowing exactly what Cloud was talking about.

* * *

_It had been about six months since they had met on the mission to Modeoheim. Zack was back to his normal self after the loss of his mentor and friend Angeal. Cloud and Zack had become friends like they had grown up together. Cloud still couldn't understand how Zack saw him as a friend. The larger man was out going, fun, loud, a people person and a ladies man. Cloud on the other hand was quiet and kept to himself for the most part. However when the First Class would show up, Cloud was always happy to see him. _

_On their off weekend, the infantryman knocked on the door to dark haired Soldier's room one evening. Answering the door wearing a pair of exercise shorts and a t-shirt, Zack's smile broadened when he saw his friend. _

"_Hey Zack, I brought a few snacks," Cloud said as he entered when Zack stepped aside._

_Not having to wait too much longer, Kunsel and another guy and fellow Soldier and friend of Zack and Kunsel's showed up and they got down to business. Rick, being a big red-headed Second Class was soon to follow in Zack's footsteps in his promotion to First. Still having a slight grudge against Zack for the dare that cost him three of his fingers, but in a way, he thanked the kid-like fun-loving guy, now his expertise was materia. Magic was something he didn't know he would be any good at, but here he was on the verge of a specialty that very few Soldiers had._

_Now, sitting across from Zack, he grinned as he won another hand of cards. _

_Game after game, each one of the guys took turns winning but then Zack decided to open his mouth, "Hey, let's make this more interesting."_

_Chewing on a large piece of beef jerky, Rick asked, "Sounds cool. How?"_

_Dealing out the next hand, Kunsel asked halfheartedly glancing between Cloud and Zack, "How about the winner dares the loser to something."_

"_That sounds awesome," Rick took a drink of his beer._

_Dipping a chip in the dip, Cloud glanced around nervously, "Uh, can't we just play the way we've been playing?" He didn't want to call attention to it, but he was the one losing the most and knowing this group, there was no telling what they would come up with._

"_Pfft! Come on Cloud, stop being such a downer," Kunsel sideways grinned at the blond and raised his eyebrows at Zack, "Well, let's make it a deal unless you don't agree."_

"_Sounds great," Watching Kunsel deal out their cards for the next hand, Zack glanced over to the blond and noticed that a few sweat beads were making their way down his temples. With a grin, he made his first bet, "I'll bet 20."_

_Rick rubbed his chin and looked at his hand and up at Zack's smiling face, "I'll see your bet and raise you another 20."_

_Kunsel looked at Zack, then Cloud. ____Tapping his finger on his lips, Kunsel studied his cards and took his time, "I'll see your bet and raise you 40." Moving_ his part of the bet in, he waited.  


_All three pairs of eyes went to Cloud's wildly anxious face. With all of them still looking at him, he asked a little angrily, "What?!" Feeling the pressure, he moved his gil in to see the bet and slowly looked over his cards. _

"_Nothing, okay. Well, I'll go ahead and call it then," Zack waited and then when they all lay their cards down it was revealed. Zack had three of a kind, Kunsel had a straight and Rick held a royal flush. _

_With Rick's smile not getting any smaller he asked, "Well Cloud, what do ya got?"_

_Slowly laying his hand down, it showed a pair of 2s. Quickly slamming his head to his folded arms on the table, he spoke in a muffled tone, "I knew this would happen."_

_Zack smacked Cloud on the back, "Hey, I'm sure that Rick won't come up with anything really bad, I mean look at him. I doubt a well thought out plan has ever crossed his mind." _

_Shooting a glare at the raven haired man, Cloud knew what strange and off the wall things that these men could think of and that statement just sealed his fate. Feelings of dread shivering up his spine, he slapped Zack in the arm, "Shut up! You're going to get me in even deeper!" Dropping his eyes, Zack fiddled with his fingers and waited for the verdict._

"_Oh, really Zack?" Rick got up and opened another beer. Kunsel got up and went closer to the kitchenette where they whispered for several minutes. With huge smiles, they looked at the two men who still sat at the table. _

"_Okay, since you are so fond of my ideas Zack, Cloud's dare has to include you too."_

"_Hey wait a minute! I didn't lose the hand," Zack stood and put his hands on his hips._

"_Oh, it won't be that bad for you, because Cloud is going to need some help," Rick put his elbows on the table and rested his chin in his palms, "Okay, here we go. Zack, that big party for Rufus' birthday is coming up this coming weekend, right?"_

_Pinching his eyebrows together while he almost questioned insecurely, "Yeah?" Zack's fidgeting got a little more noticeable. Cloud kept his head down on the table._

"_Here's the deal, the dare is that Cloud has to go and get in a picture with Rufus," High fiving, the two Second Class Soldiers laughed out loud and Kunsel smiled behind his beer as the blond wanted to slink off the table and to the floor.  
_

_Cloud paused a minute, raised his head and stared at him, pushing his eyebrows together, "What?!" _

"_I wasn't invited and besides, I already have a date that night, sorry. You're going to have to find something else to torture Spike," Crossing his arms, Zack stared at his gloating friends._

"_Didn't I hear you on the phone with Aerith earlier? She's leaving town or something that weekend with her mother?" Rick leaned back and crossed his arms and grinned._

_Kunsel grinned and lifted his drink, "I saw your invitation at your apartment, it is for you plus one."_

_Zack's face and arms dropped, he looked at Cloud and murmured, "Oh, hell…" _

_Cloud's mouth dropped open and he quickly looked around, __"__What are you…huh-wait…?" Cloud stuttered then whispered, "We're guys, people will think that we're... you know... a couple." _

___Kunsel smiled from behind his beer and added with glee, "Don't worry about that Cloud, n______o one will know it's you, because _you'll be dressed like a girl." 

___Zack half expected Cloud to hit the floor with that news, but he couldn't look at the blond bundle of anger, so he bit his lips closed to stifle the laughter._

"_Oh come on! You guys are being unreasonable," Cloud pleaded, "Can't we do something else?!"_

"_It's okay Spike, we will get in there and get back out before anyone really notices us," Zack tried reassuring his friend, but the blond wore a defeated look on his face._

_The next day, Zack found the despondent infantryman alone in the almost deserted mess hall. Waking up that morning, he felt better about the situation than Cloud did. But then again, he wasn't the one who had to wear a dress. Looking up from his hot cereal-turned cold, Cloud sadly greeted the dark-haired First, _"_Hi."  
_

_Walking over to the sulking boy, he tried to explain himself, "I'm sorry I said anything to him, but I've been thinking about it and I have a plan."_

_"I figured, but I don't know if I want to hear what you have to say…" Cloud slouched, pushed his tray away and lay his head down on his arms.  
_

"_I brought you something that might cheer you up," Pulling out a chair, Zack plopped down. _

"_What is it?" Cloud mumbled._

_Opening the box, Zack said as he revealed the contents, "My mom sent me a care package. Wanna know what she sent me?"_

_Cloud lifted his head slowly and focused on the now open box._

_"Homemade Chocoberry Pie!" As if by magic, the Soldier produced two forks and handed one to his friend._

_Taking one of the forks, Cloud sank it into the soft crust on the top, scooping up a healthy bite and tasting it. Closing his eyes, he moaned as he savored the taste, "How do they expect me to pass as a girl?"_

_Leaning his elbows on the table, Zack scooped up some of the pie and ate his bite, also with a moan, "Well," Swallowing hard, he tried a compliment, "Your pretty…uh…in a good way!" Cloud huffed and rolled his eyes, "I've got a plan and Kunsel is going shopping with us. We can do this, I know we can," Zack said with a confident smile._

"…_Fine…" Cloud cautiously agreed._

"_Great," Zack affirmed with his remarkably comforting smile. _

* * *

A/N: Thanks to all of you who favorite, subscribed and/or reviewed, I appreciate your time. To quote another author, "Getting reviews makes me feel all warm and squishy."

Please send me your reviews. It is really easy. Just click your arrow in the little box, write what you thought or felt about the chapter and then click right down there, just below the box. A little lower… a little to the right… yeah, right there! Click it! *grinning*


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I do not now or before and most likely not in the future, own Final Fantasy, Square Enix or any of the characters.

A/N: Sorry for the delay in the posting, this flashback was not cooperating with the changes. I am going to blame it on Kunsel and my OC Rick for daring Zack and Cloud into this predicament in the first place. I will not tell you that I forgot... because I did... not... Okay yeah I forgot, sorry guys.

Also, instead of writing the word out like SOLDIER, I have opted to just capitalize the first letter. (Regular infantry soldiers will not have a capital so that will distinguish the difference.) To me, sometimes I just find it distracting if I see the word a few lines down and my eyes are drawn down to it instead of the line I'm on.

I want to thank my fantastic beta **SubZeroChimera**!

* * *

"Insanity is doing the same thing, over and over again, but expecting different results." -Albert Einstein

Chapter 3

"_Calm down Zack, I really don't think that you will get in too much trouble for crashing Rufus' party. I mean geez, did you see how many people were going to be there tonight?" Kunsel stacked his feet on the coffee table._

_Just as he started to lose hope, there was a knock at the door, "Yes!" He exclaimed with a fist pump and when he opened the door, grabbed Cloud's arm and yanked him into the room. Cloud's head whipped back at the sudden forward movement. Shutting the door in a hurry, the well-dressed man once again leaned against the door. _

_Cloud rubbed the back of his now sore neck, "Ouch."_

_Sheepishly grinning, Zack apologized, "Oh, sorry."_

_"I waited until some other Soldiers were gone before I came to the door," Cloud said flatly. Noticing Zack, already dressed and ready to go surprised him at how well his friend cleaned up. Luckily, it wasn't a military event, so the average black tuxedo that Zack wore actually looked really good on him. Then he took a look at the apartment and it looked just like it did when he had been over for the game, messy. The raven-haired bachelor said that the messes made it look comfortable._

_Zack looked him up and down and in a calmer tone than the earlier one, "Well shall we get started?"_

_"... I guess… so…" _

_Zack clapped his hands together and almost hop-skipped into his bedroom. The Soldier figured if they had to do this, he might as well make the best of it. _

_Cloud followed, head hanging down as his feet shuffled loudly on the carpet. Kunsel smiled as he watched the young blond, "Hey don't look so down Cloud, it could always be worse." _

_Raising his head, Cloud restrained himself from yelling, "How could it be any worse?"_

"_Well one thing, you would have to have a picture with Rufus and Sephiroth. Right now, it is just one of them," Kunsel leaned forward and picked up the camera and tossed it to Zack. Kunsel stealthily pulled his phone from his pocket and set it near his leg.  
_

_"Oh… yay, that makes it sooo much better..." Cloud retorted._

_Ignoring the sour attitude from his blond friend, Zack began taking things out of his closet. The knee-length dress was off-white with royal blue embroidering in the shapes of leaves and vines. The embroidering started at the bottom of the gently flared skirt and waved up as it tapered off at the bust. It had sleeves that went to just below his elbows and the front went all the way up to the neck. The back of the dress had a dip in fabric with extra material made from a sheer material the royal blue color as the embroidering on the front of the dress. That little extra pizazz was going to show more than half of Cloud's back. _

_With a grin, he added, "I hope you shaved your legs," As he shut the door, Zack finished "Okay, I'll be in the living room if you need any help."_

_Cloud looked at Zack and smirked sarcastically at him, knowing full well, that his legs weren't hairy, which was one of the things that fueled the teasing from the other soldiers. _

_Zack shut the door and Cloud just looked over the array of items. Beginning to undress, he started to go through some of the things. Some things he didn't know what they were for, "Hey Zack, what is this for? I already have underwear." _

_He stuck it out the door for Zack to see, "Oh that! Yeah… um, tuck your junk!"_

_"Tuck my junk?" Cloud asked himself under his breath, "Great…this should be comfortable. Well at least that's not girly."_

_As he wiggled himself into the 'underwear' that was about 3 sizes to small he yelped at the pinching, "I think you got the wrong size, these are way too small!" He yelled at Zack._

_"Oh no, they have got to be small so nothing shows up!" Zack said with a small smile on his face and it showed in his voice too._

_Fully amused, the two Soldiers heard through the door, "I hate you!"_

_Bursting into quiet laughter and a clink of beer bottles with Kunsel, Zack couldn't help but picture the fight that Cloud was putting up to get in the super-tight tidy-whities._

_Back in the bedroom, Cloud started on the pantyhose, then the slip, but the bra, with that he had difficulty. So that the back clasp of the bra didn't show from the dip in the back of the dress, Zack had gotten one that was strapless and went down to the waist. Fighting with it, trying to get it clasp together, he tried turning it around to clasped it in the front. When he turned it so the clasp was in the back, a couple of the hooks came undone. Turning back so he could study the problem, he noticed that the hooks were bent a little and didn't completely hook around the small metal loop that that particular hook was supposed to go to. _

_Thinking that this was a way out it, he took a breath to call it off to Zack when the hooks slipped unimpeded onto the loop. In a huff, he exhaled and blew his bangs from his face and cursed quietly, "Gaia-dammit."_

_Grabbing the rolled socks, he stuffed his 'boobs' but noticed that he couldn't see his feet, "Maybe two pairs of socks per boob are too big." Taking out a pair on each side it left his bust at a modest size. Of course he preferred big breasts and he wanted to get his hands on Tifa's big... Freezing in place, the extra small underwear began to get smaller. In a louder volume, he cursed, "Fuck!"_

_"Spiky? Is everything okay in there?" _

_When the door began to creep open, Cloud grabbed his crotch and leaped at the door, shutting it in Zack's face. In hastiness, he yelled, "Yes! No! I mean... Go away!" That was all Cloud needed was Zack and Kunsel thinking that dressing as a girl turned him on, he had to get this under control quickly._

_Going into the bathroom, farther from the bedroom door, he leaned on the counter and began whispering to his unruly dick. The tight underwear was getting tighter and began cutting off circulation, "Listen," Unwilling to pull them down because he would never get them back on he continued, "This is not going to happen right now," Getting a drink of water, he tried picturing his grandmother sitting in her large overstuffed living room chair just before she died. That was the night she gave him her wedding ring to give to his future wife. Cloud had never known his Grandfather, but from the fond memories she shared, he was a kind man. _

_Getting his body back under control, he picked up the dress and turned it around, flipped it over and seemed to start back at the beginning. Growling in frustration, he slammed the dress on the bed, then he saw what he was looking for. Slipping the dress over his head, he whispered, "How did I get myself into this?" Rubbing the material down his sides and legs, it smoothed out and lay flatteringly against his body, "Oh yeah, I remember, I suck at poker."_

_The shoes weren't flats, as much as his protests at the store went in deaf ears. Both Kunsel and Zack overrode his bid for flats and instead, they picked four inch heels. His practice walk at the store was full of laughter, mainly because of his lack of grace. After about an hour, he finally got the hang of it to a round of applause that he quickly squashed when he threw one of the shoes. When Zack ducked, the high heel knocked over a display of pantyhose and they decided that they should leave when the sales girl crossed her arms and threatened to call the police.  
_

_Back in the bathroom, he flipped the wig on and the long process of tucking his spiky hair under the dark blond shoulder length hair. Sighing at his reflection, he shook his head and readied himself for the juvenile remarks that Zack and Kunsel were sure to throw at him._

_Opening the bedroom door, Zack was speechless at first, but it didn't last long. Zack couldn't help himself as he let slip from behind his hand that covered the huge smile and muffled a laugh. Cloud glared at him and Zack squeezed out between snickers, "Oh now, don't get mad," holding his hands up in surrender, "We need to get your make up done and get your earrings on," Zack said as a flashbulb of the camera phone went off._

_In a fit of angry yelling, Cloud shrieked, "Damn it Kunsel! No pictures until we get to the party!"_

_With a grin, Kunsel pocketed his phone and stood to help get the young infantryman ready by b__rushing out some of the noticeable tangles and fixed the subtle curls of the soft wig so he didn't look like he'd been through a wind storm. _

_Fidgeting at the added attention from Kunsel, Cloud turned his eyes back to Zack __while he applied the make-up. The dark-haired Soldier unconsciously commented out loud to the fuming blond, "It's a good thing you don't really have to shave yet." Zack ignored the tight scowl he received and ordered, "Stop making faces, you're gonna mess me up."_

_Clenching his jaw tight, Cloud remarked, "All of you guys are already messed up."_

_After everything was finished, Cloud stepped to the coffee table to get his purse and when he bent over, his super small underwear shifted and he hollered, "Oww! Freakin underwear!" Bouncing around, he groped at himself trying to stop the pinching in his nether region. The two Soldiers laughed and Cloud shouted, "Hey… I got a problem here! Don't laugh!"_

_Zack said very matter of fact, but with a hint of a smile, "You're gonna have to act a little more feminine than that."_

_"It's your fault! The underwear is too small and it… pinches!" Making a trip back to the bathroom, he fixed the problem undies. _

_Once his problem was fixed, he started to relax a little about the situation, until Zack spoke in a semi suave voice, "You know, if you're a good girl, you might get lucky tonight." Snorting laughter erupted from both Soldiers as Cloud ignored them and Zack shut the door leaving an utterly humored Kunsel to lock up when he left to go back to his own room._

_Stomping down the hall, Cloud ignored him as Zack hollered, "Hey, don't walk away, I'm sorry."_

_Cloud clenched his fists and if his eyes could have shot lasers, Zack would be a pile of smoldering flesh on the floor. Once Zack got himself under some form of control, he took Cloud's arm and they walked to the courtyard. Stopping just short of the door, Cloud moved to the window that led to the corridor leading to the reception hall and peeked through it. _

_Zack slowly walked up with his hands in his pockets, "__I guess it's now or never," At the beginning feeling of butterflies in his stomach, Zack almost second guessed himself about crashing this party. He really didn't want to get on Sephiroth's bad side if he found out._

_"Can I choose never?"_

"_Sorry Spiky, we can't renege on this or we might never be trusted again," Grabbing the dress clad man, he spun him around, "Reneging on a bet goes against, you know, Soldier honor and all." _

"_Fine, let's just get this over with," Cloud moved his head back and forth over his shoulders trying to loosen the tightened muscles in his neck._

"_Now remember, we are going to try to find Rufus as soon as possible," Adjusting his jacket, Zack offered his arm to his date. _

_Cloud took Zack's arm, "Remember, we're in this because of you and your big mouth, you know that right?" The Soldier didn't respond, he knew it was true._

_As they walked in, Cloud was in awe at the sight of all the people in their best dressed. Zack escorted him over to the drinks and ordered two. Handing Cloud a fruity looking drink colored blue and a tiny twig of a blue flower in it. Just holding the drink out in front of his chest, Zack looked at the drink and then Cloud, "What's the matter? You don't want a drink?"_

_Whispering loudly, Cloud narrowed his eyes, "Really? You got me a girly looking drink?"_

_Leaning comfortably on the bar, Zack's lips turned up in a faint, but endearing smile, "In case you didn't look in a mirror before we left the apartment… for tonight you are a girl."_

_Resigning to the drink he was handed, he held it up to his nose and all he could smell was alcohol. Taking a test sip, the cold beverage swirled around in his mouth, and then he could taste it, his favorite, chocoberry. Nudging Zack with his elbow, he asked, "They have chocoberry flavored drinks?" _

_The huge smile on the taller man answered his question, but then Zack started talking to one of the party guests that walked up to him. After short introductions, Cloud continued to look around mesmerized. Everything was decorated very elegantly and he had never seen anything like it. Dark red and gold linens and tapestries and a dark red carpet covered the room. Soft music played in the background and the sound of quiet conversation filled the air. _

_While looking around, Cloud finally saw HIM. The General, Sephiroth, his childhood hero and he was looking right at them. Cloud looked around to see if he happened to be looking at someone else next to him, but the dress wearing infantryman and his fun loving friend were the only ones in the vicinity right then. Sephiroth was standing directly across the room from them and the General noticed a look of recognition and admiration. _

"_Oh, my Gaia, -t-there's S-S-Sephiroth…" Cloud's mouth hung open as his arm squeezed Zack's unconsciously._

_"Yeah, you knew he would be here, didn't you?" Glancing to his friend, it was obvious that Cloud was caught in his wildest childhood dreams of wanting to actually be Sephiroth. Reaching over, Zack lifted Cloud's chin so that he was looking directly in his face, but the deep blue eyes stayed glued to the General. With a mild shake, the Soldier broke the spell, "It is time to go on inside the main room. I bet good money that Rufus is in there somewhere," Zack finished, "You ready?"_

_Pausing, Cloud swallowed and cleared his throat, "You mean this isn't it?" Zack shook his head and Cloud asked rhetorically, "Of course not. How could I get that lucky?" Leaving their empty glasses on the bar, Cloud took the arm that his date offered. There was a huge crystal chandelier hanging in the middle of the half illuminated room. Smaller chandeliers spotted around the larger one helped light the room. Music started up and people started to make their way to the dance floor on one side of the room. _

_After several songs, Zack pulled on Cloud's arm, "Let's go dance."_

_Cloud pulled back, "I hate dancing."_

_Tugging forward again, Zack asked, "You know how, don't you?"_

_Again pulling away from the dance floor, Cloud grimaced, "Yes, I just hate dancing. My mother insisted that I learn how to."_

_Zack leaned in and whispered in Cloud's ear, "It won't be that bad, besides, I see Rufus," Zack pulled harder and Cloud followed, but not willingly._

_Leading Cloud to the middle of the dance floor, Zack pulled him close. Fighting back, the blond moved away from the taller man. Zack just doubled his efforts to pull him close. Finally relenting, but only because Zack was stronger, Cloud danced the tango with as little enthusiasm as possible. "I think you're enjoying this a little too much Zack," Cloud whispered and all he got in return was one of his famous smiles. Zack went gliding around the floor with flourish and Cloud just rolled his eyes and got pulled along for the ride. _

_When the song finally ended, Cloud started to walk off the dance floor, but Zack grabbed his hand just as another song started up. Zack pulled him in close again with a "humph" escaping from the force that he was pulled into Zack's chest. The Soldier's smile made Cloud want to punch him right in the face, but he opted for a roll of his eyes and a sigh, "I swear, if you tell anybody about this-" Cloud started._

_"I know, I know, I promise I won't tell a soul," Zack interrupted. A few more steps of the dance and he looked down to his date in an inquisitive way, then he asked, "Did you take off that tight underwear?"_

_It wasn't that he was aroused or anything, it was just something that was not supposed to be there on a woman. Blushing brightly he glanced up and angrily whispered, "Well, if you really must know, they were pinching my balls and I almost lost my dick somewhere farther north than it should have been." When the song ended, they walked from the floor and stood by and watched for the President's elusive son. _

_Leaning over, Zack whispered in Cloud's ear, "He has to be here somewhere. I lost sight of him half way through that second dance. Maybe he left?" Suddenly, Zack stopped and straightened his back. _

_"May I get a dance with your lovely date Zackary?" A deep sensual voice from behind Cloud asked._

_Zack smiled the largest grin he had ever seen and then graciously offered his date to the General._

_Cloud narrowed his eyes at the Soldier and mouthed a few choice words at him while the General guided the blond out to the dance floor. Zack was glad that he didn't really know what he was saying, but he knew that he would hear about it later._

_Sephiroth took him by the hand and pulled him close, however he was much gentler than Zack. He had to make sure to keep his crotch away from Sephiroth's leg just as he had done with Zack when they first started dancing. It was only when he wasn't thinking about it that he had moved a little in the hold and that's when the brunette noticed. _

_Cloud had always wanted to meet the great General of Shinra, but this was ridiculous, "I suppose from the look on your face earlier that you know who I am?" Sephiroth took to the dance as if the song was specifically written for him._

_Cloud cleared his throat and tried to sound as feminine as possible, "Y-yes sir."_

_Sephiroth asked in a pleasant voice, "So how do you know Zackary?"_

_"Uh… I… uh, we're friends, -were friends," Clearing his throat, the flustered blond grinned nervously, "We're just friends."_

_Without missing a step, Sephiroth asked, "Well you know my name; may I ask your name?" _

_"Oh… I'm M-Maria"_

_Sephiroth went gliding around the floor as he pulled Cloud even closer and an added hand on his ass. Cloud's heels clicked and his left one almost fell off when he stumbled at the disturbing touch. Desperately looking for Zack, he couldn't find him at first and when he did finally spot him, Zack was grinning and giving him a thumbs up as he took a quick picture. Cloud rolled his eyes and mouthed a few more words over Sephiroth's shoulder. Too bad it wasn't Rufus, or they could have left.  
_

_After the dance, Sephiroth offered his arm to Cloud and he hesitantly took it so he could be escorted from the dance floor. Instead of going back to Zack though, Sephiroth walked over to an area with very few people. Cloud got a little nervous and quickly started looking for Zack again. 'Damn him!' Cloud thought._

_Just as he thought things were going to get even more awkward, dinner was announced by one of the waiters._

_"Would you mind if I escorted you to the dining table? Zackary looks like he is busy at the moment."_

_Cloud found Zack talking up three girls that had him almost surrounded._

_Without waiting for an answer, Sephiroth took Cloud's hand, hooked it over his arm and placed his hand on top of it. They walked over and the large circular tables were set up with grand table cloths and large extravagant center pieces. Sephiroth pulled out a chair for Cloud, but he stood his ground and announced needing to go to the ladies room. _

_Feeling the General's eyes watch him as he walked away, he sped up. _

_Zack saw Cloud walking away from the table. When he looked at Sephiroth, his eyes were attentively watching Cloud's lightly swaying backside. The blush in Sephiroth's cheeks gave it away that he was more than interested. Zack couldn't help but smile._

_As Cloud got out to the outer room, he stepped around the corner. Feeling lucky, he stayed where no one could see him, especially Sephiroth. When someone was coming around the corner, a panic attack straightened his spine. Then he saw that it was Zack who wore a very large smile.  
_

_Ignoring the gloating smile, Cloud asked, "Where is Rufus?"_

_"I saw him coming this way, so I beat him out here to tell you," Zack stepped aside as Rufus turned the corner. Quickly without letting the man out of his sights, Zack jumped in front of the white-suited blond, "Sir, may I get a picture of you and my date?"_

_Whispering in the ear of the woman beside him, he nodded, "Fine." Cloud exhaled when he heard the click as the picture was taken. _

_When Rufus dismissed himself, Zack whispered in Cloud's ear, "That man thinks he is fooling people by being seen with women, but we all know the truth."_

"_I don't care Zack."_

_"Just one more thing, I wanted to tell you and Sephiroth make a lovely couple," Cloud didn't think his friend's smile could get any bigger. With Zack receiving another glare, he finished up, "I got the picture so we can get out of here."_ _A startling voice behind them stopped their conversation. _

"_Is everything alright?" Sephiroth approached them with a concerned look, "They are going to serve dinner soon. Are you attending?" _

_Zack looked at Cloud and tried not to laugh. Mulling it over, Zack thought quickly and pulled Cloud close to his side. The Soldier's hand slid down Cloud's side to his waist. A grin and a wink, he addressed Sephiroth, "I think we are ready to go…" Placing his lips gingerly on Cloud's temple, he finished, with the wig hiding his amused smile, "Aren't you baby?"_

_Having a very difficult time keeping his laughter from bursting out, Zack held on to the twitching, and nervously smiling blond as he swallowed hard and nodded with an added, "Uh-huh." _

_Sephiroth shallowly bowed to Cloud and said, "Thank you for the lovely evening."_

_As Sephiroth walked away, Cloud looked at Zack through a large fake smile and said through gritted teeth, "I hate you."_

_Zack burst into laughter as Cloud found his way out of the building and he followed not too far behind him. Meeting Cloud back at his apartment, tapping his foot, the irate blond was waiting not-so-patiently to be let in. Zack couldn't help but smile, looking at Cloud, he said, "Can I help you out of your dress?"  
_

_Cloud then said, "You're an asshole!" Zack finally got the door unlocked and followed Cloud into the apartment. _

_Making a B-line for the bedroom, Cloud moved quickly across the messy living room, Zack said, "Well that went pretty well, don't you think?" it came out before he could stop himself, Zack broke out in to another fit of laughter as Cloud threw his purse at him and slammed the door to the bedroom. _

_Zack grabbed a drink from his little fridge and took a swig, "I hope you will still be friends with me tomorrow," He yelled to Cloud and he heard the blond mumble something that sounded like it could be a stream of curse words. Zack just smiled to himself and took another drink._

* * *

A/N: Thanks to all of you who favorite, subscribed and/or reviewed, I appreciate your time. To quote another author, "Getting reviews makes me feel all warm and squishy."

Please send me your reviews. It is really easy. Just click your arrow in the little box, write what you thought or felt about the chapter and then click right down there, just below the box. A little lower… a little to the right… yeah, right there! Click it! *grinning*


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I do not now or before and most likely not in the future, own Final Fantasy, Square Enix or any of the characters.

A/N: Just like with my other stories, I am not writing the word SOLDIER in all caps, instead, I am just capitalizing the first letter. Sorry for the late update, the next one should be soon.

I want to thank my fantastic beta **SubZeroChimera**!

* * *

"Honesty is the first chapter in the book of wisdom." –Thomas Jefferson

Chapter 4

They were still pretty cold, but their shared body heat helped to make it more bearable. Hearing something on the outside of the door just before it opened Zack jumped up. Realizing that it was just one of the large guards with a tray of food and another man followed him in with another tray. The first guy looked at both of them and his eyes stopped on Cloud. Shifting on the bed, Cloud tried to hide behind Zack as much as he could. The Soldier stepped between Cloud and the guy to break his line of sight. Zack took the trays and asked, "You got a problem there…Davis?"

"No, not at all," Davis stated as he turned around to leave, "Oh, before I forget, here are some clothes and a couple of blankets." The guard took some clothes from a cart outside the room and tossed them over in Cloud's direction.

"It's about damn time; we are near frozen in here!" Zack spit out.

As the guards left, Zack took some steps toward the door as it shut and Cloud was already going through the clothes to get his. Separating the underwear, black sweat pants and white t-shirts, he handed Zack the larger clothes. Putting the food down on the side of the bed and as he dressed, Zack's mind was in overdrive. Wrapping the blankets around themselves, they sat down to eat together. His friend was already in trouble and he would be damned if he was going to let that piece of shit around him. Cloud didn't show any other outward signs that it bothered him, but he knew that it did because it bothered him.

Zack and Cloud finished their dinner, if that's what you wanted to call it. Cloud got up and slowly made his way to the bathroom. Zack lay back on his bed, curled up in his blanket and with a belly full of slop, started to doze off. Coming out of the bathroom, he saw that Zack's eyes were closed and he quietly went to his bed and lay down. He tried to get comfortable and without a pillow it was difficult. He loved his pillow and missed snuggling up with it. Funny the things you miss. Eventually getting somewhat comfortable he closed his eyes, but sleep came at a price.

* * *

"_Sephiroth!"_

_A shout that sounded like Zack yelling, woke Cloud from a sound sleep. An odd orange glow emanated from outside the room window. When Cloud came out of the Inn, the smell and heat of the fire was overwhelming. _

_Turning and seeing his house on fire sent chills of panic throughout his body and his legs began to tremble. Jerking himself out of the shock, he raced over to his house and called, "Mom," There was nothing in return. _

_"Mom!" Running into the house, it was blocked by the heat of the flames right in front of him. Then he saw her, her gentle face, he couldn't bear to look at the rest of her, but her face looked oddly beautiful and peaceful, just like she was only asleep, "MOM!" With legs turning into jelly, he dropped to his knees and screamed out with tears in his eyes. Unable to get to her, hold her, kiss her cheek like he always did, he cried out, "How could this happen?" Then he heard something from outside. Just as he was coming out of what was left of his house, he saw Zack running up to the trail that lead to the reactor. A decision had to be made; would he follow?_

* * *

"Mom!" The word came out of nowhere shaking him awake. Looking in the direction it came from, Cloud, lying on his side, was shaking and his hands holding his drawn up legs. Anguish covered his face and tears dripped over his nose to the mattress.

"Mom!" The sound of the second scream startled him with a flinch of his eyes. Zack got up and walked over, the feeling of just wanting to pick him up and hold him so that he could grieve his mother. Tears began to well up into his own eyes and then he heard the anguished sound of a son losing all he had left in the world, "MOM!"

Swallowing down his tears, he tapped slowly on the pale arm, "Hey Spike, you okay?"

Waking up with a start, he looked up and saw Zack looking a little concerned, "Y…yeah, I guess. Why?" Cloud quickly wiped his face and hoped that Zack hadn't seen the tears.

"No reason, you just looked like you were having a bad dream is all," Wanting to comfort him, needing to know he was alright, he chose not to try right now. If Cloud was hiding his tears, he wasn't ready to talk just yet, but one day would be ready and when that time came, he would be there for him.

The next morning their door opened and Zack was on his feet before he was even awake. Cloud was already awake and just sat up on the edge of his bed.

"Are you going to go without a fight, or do we need to do this the hard way?" Davis asked with a hint of trepidation.

Zack looked at him and in pure Zack fashion he said, "Well what fun would that be if we cooperated? I've itched for a fight for a while now."

The other guard came in behind Davis, Zack looked at his name tag, "Drake…hmm. You want to join in the fun too?"

Drake said nothing and slightly looked down at his feet. A few strands of his dirty blond hair fell into his face. Davis shrugged his muscles at Zack and turned his attention to Cloud. As Davis started over toward Cloud, Zack stepped in front of him and Davis stated firmly, "Move or I'll move you."

"I sure would like to see you try," Zack stated harshly. Still feeling weak, he knew if it came down to it, he would probably lose the fight. Drake stepped around Davis and took Zack by the arm.

Zack wanted to make a move, but he decided that now was not the time, he would just have to let it go, this time. Shrugging his shoulders toward Davis, he just smirked at him like only Zack could. As Drake moved to pass Davis, Zack struck his toe on one of the posts that held the bed up, causing him to trip. The former Soldier's face hit the tile, splitting his lip open with his teeth. Moving swiftly, Davis crooned in Zack's ear, "That is how I like to see you, on your knees."

After laughing at Zack, Davis got a hold of Cloud's arm and pulled him up to his feet. Seeing how he looked at him before and now what he said to Zack, Cloud pulled back, but it didn't loosen the guard's grip. Getting closer to the blonde's face, a smile split the guard's face, "That isn't how it works around here," Cloud couldn't move; the small amount of time he did sleep was filled with nightmares and the fear of what was happening. The underlying threat in the guard's words got him afraid to try anything else.

Drake helped Zack to his feet and he saddened at the terror that filled his eyes. Was Cloud giving up? That was what he didn't sense, but deep down, he knew it was true because it was as though he was giving up too.

"Now, if you're ready, we can get you down to the professor," Davis said as he pulled Cloud hard by his arm up behind him, just enough that Cloud had trouble keeping his balance as they walked.

As they walked through the doors, Hojo was standing with his back to them, "You're late." Hojo sounded annoyed, turning to look at them, "Why are you late?"

Zack spit a mouth full of bloody saliva on the floor, "The guys here were just showing us how they liked to have fun."

The Soldier turned lab specimen looked around and this was different from the lab they were in while in the tanks. This one had two large metal tables on one side of the room and one of the mako tanks like what they woke up in on the other side. This room was bigger than the other room. What got Zack concerned was both tables had thick leather straps with metal buckles. Zack's thoughts raced, 'Oh shit… What are we in for?'

Besides the two gorillas that were holding him and Cloud, there was another steroid junkie there and Zack read his name tag, "Harper huh? What do you do for fun?" The new big guy's brown hair was messy, but in a styled sort of way. Obviously he cared about his appearance.

The two guys in white coats were busy doing something, but he couldn't see. Moving his gaze back to the doctor, he blinked at the look on the doctor's face as he watched both specimens, "Go ahead and put specimen Z on the table on the left and specimen C on the other."

Davis and Drake proceeded to take them over and started to strap them to the tables as instructed, a strap for each wrist, one around the hips, one for their chest and one for each ankle.

"I guess they want us to stick around for a while," Zack said smirking up at the silent man, "What is your name again?" Again, the silent guard said nothing. The Soldier then said to no one in particular, "I guess he likes to play hard to get," Zack raised his head and looked around and if he turned his head to the side, he could see Cloud. Davis smacked him in the back of his head, "Ouch! What was that for?!"

"We will start with the injections Dr. Chase," Hojo said without looking up from his notes.

After the Doctor got their vitals, he nodded his head to one of the lab techs.

The guys at the back turned around and Zack saw each guy had two syringes full of what looked like mako. Both men walked toward them. Zack had regular injections of mako from being in Soldier, but it was only one syringe, not two. Zack looked at the syringes and back up at the lab tech and back down at the syringes, "Oh hell no! Are you trying to kill us?" Zack broke out in a sweat, "Hojo, you twisted fucker!"

Tying the tourniquet, the tech found a vein and injected the mako. Keeping his eyes closed, Zack let a few tears fall down his cheeks as he grit his teeth, groaning loudly, he rode out the pain. Normally painful with just one injection, two was excruciating.

After Zack's injections, the doctor counted down to ten minutes and then twenty minutes. Both times he took vitals. Zack's head lolled to the side and his breathing was still rapid and small quiet grunts were all he heard from him then.

Seeing Zack's reaction to his first injection terrified Cloud. If Zack acted like that with the injections, then what was going to happen to him? Then he saw the two syringes meant for him. Beginning to struggle and plead to the tech to leave him alone. With the tourniquet around his arm, the tech thumped at his pale skin until he found a good vein. Slurring words from Zack helped to calm him, "Spike, just breathe through it."

Cloud tried to hold it together, but a scream still escaped. Zack was helpless to do anything to help him and for that reason, he blamed himself for Cloud being in this situation. After Cloud's spasms and screams subsided, Zack silently sobbed at his irresponsibility for getting Cloud into this situation.

After the third set of their vitals were taken, Zack spit out weakly and slurred, "Hojo, you are a sick fuck, you know that?" The sound of Cloud's painful reactions broke his heart, the first was always the worst anyway, and he wouldn't blame him if the blond hated him, he hated himself right about then.

Deposited back into their cell, Cloud writhed on his bed. It was the sort of pain that hurt worse if you didn't move, so there was no rest.

Being used to the injections, Zack just rode out the dizzying effects that sometimes got his stomach twisted in knots. The Soldier injections were smaller doses than what they were just given. Cloud's body twitched violently and then would relax again and he sobbed quietly. Feeling ashamed of himself, Cloud turned to face the wall.

"When does the pain stop?" Cloud asked in small airy breaths.

Zack still slurred a little, but it was easier for him to speak, "Well, if it were regular injections, it would be anytime now." Only able to comfort him a little, Zack felt as though he was failing miserably, "Spike, don't worry too much, everyone reacts this way at first."

Covering himself with his blanket, he tried to fall asleep hoping to sleep through most of the pain. That was when Davis came in with some food, "Well looks like the professor knocked the fight right out of you two."

Zack smiled weakly, "For you, I'll always be ready to fight."

Davis left with a smirk that spoke more than any words could.

* * *

After his test subjects first series of mako injections, he headed out of lab 3 and over to lab 1. The crystal shimmered in the mako bath it was in. The months that his subjects had been in the tanks, the hard surface started to break down. Once he was able to get it broken down enough, he could release its precious contents. Hoping that a perfect preserved body was intact in there, if he could get the body intact, he could start over.

Gently caressing the glass of the tank, Hojo spoke softly, "I got the blond one that killed you. I will make him your new clone. I will begin introducing Jenova cells and mako and then strengthening his body. If I can get it strong enough to hold your DNA, you will live again."

Many days later, and looking over the tank holding the crystal, notes in hand, Hojo had been running tests and simulations on his own for well over a week now. The Professor had banned everyone from the lab with the crystal and evidently found some interesting new data. The project was going to be taking a different direction. Deciding to share the new information, he picked up the phone, "Dr. Chase, come to lab 1 immediately." Hanging up, a glimmer flashed through his dark eyes when an actual smile crept across his thin lips. There was a little surprise for Doctor Chase, and his new idea was brilliant.

Just as he cackled to himself, Chase entered the lab and Hojo's good mood sounded in his voice, "Excellent!" Hojo said louder than expected, startling the Doctor.

"What do you need me for Professor?" Chase asked in a stern voice.

"How long have you been here in my labs?"

"Well I never really thought about it. Why?" Doctor Chase crossed his arms.

"The crystal has been suspended in the mako bath since its recovery. Simply saying, we are going to see how things are progressing."

"Sir, with all due respect, I am a medical doctor. I don't understand why I am in here in this lab."

"It is very simple doctor," Hojo stepped over to a panel on the side of the tank and flipped a switch. A sound came from a speaker that mounted to one side of the tank. It was a very distinct sound that the doctor knew well, a heartbeat.

* * *

A/N: Thanks to all of you who favorite, subscribed and/or reviewed, I appreciate your time. To quote another author, "Getting reviews makes me feel all warm and squishy."

Please send me your reviews. It is really easy. Just click your arrow in the little box, write what you thought or felt about the chapter and then click right down there, just below the box. A little lower… a little to the right… yeah, right there! Click it! *grinning*


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